FOIA changes slash cost of public records

Public records will become cheaper and easier to access under changes to Michigan's Freedom of Information Act.

Government agencies will not be allowed to charge more than 10 cents per page for copies of public records; they can face increased fines for delaying responses; and people seeking the records now can sue if they consider the fees to be exorbitant.

Dirk Milliman of the Michigan Press Association said the changes have been years in the making and involved compromise, but, overall, the new law increases transparency and access to public records.

"We are pleased with the end result as it addresses the two most major concerns expressed by our members with regard to FOIA in Michigan: costs and delays," he said.

The changes take effect July 1.

Gov. Rick Snyder signed them into law last week, saying in a statement that the changes remind government workers that they "are working on behalf of our residents, who should not be discouraged from learning about how that government is serving them."

The law allows requesters who believe they are being overcharged for records to sue and ask a court to lower the fee. If the court concludes the public body arbitrarily and capriciously charged an unreasonable fee, the court must assess $1,000 in punitive damages.

The new law also increases punitive damages from $500 to $2,000 on public bodies that arbitrarily and capriciously break the law by refusing or delaying the release of public records.

It also requires courts to fine public bodies $2,500 to $7,500 for willfully and intentionally failing to follow the law. The fines are paid to the state.

Michigan first passed its Freedom of Information Act in 1976, in the wake of the Watergate scandals in Washington. Many states and the federal government sought to increase access to public records then as a way to prevent future abuses.

Newspapers and other news media outlets routinely use the FOIA to access public records on government contracting, hiring, spending and other matters. The Detroit Free Press used the law to access records from the administration of former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick as part of the text messages scandal.

But the rights of access created under the law apply to all citizens, not just news media outlets. Residents acting on their own have used FOIA requests to uncover questionable dealings across the state.

Another change in the law requires governments to provide the records electronically instead of on paper if the requester seeks them in that format. It includes an exemption if local government lacks the technology to provide the records electronically.

If a government misses a deadline for replying to a request, it must discount the fees charged.